Scandinavian Fibulae of the Prussians on the Baltic Coast

Abstract

The author studies the issue of the Western Balts’ Scandinavian fibulae, which did not come into the research focus before. The findings of this study are:

1. The Prussian Scandinavian fibulae are predominantly of local origin and appear in western Sambia in the early VI century.
2. The indicated fibulae are originally outfit details of men buried in Prussian burial grounds outside the framework of traditional rituals; later they appear in shared (coupled) burials.
3. In the VI-VII centuries Scandinavian fibulae are presented in Prussian and Mazury burials as a double piece (a detail of women’s attire) or as a single one (a fastener of a men’s raincoat or women’s cape).
4. Throughout the period of manufacturing Scandinavian fibulae by Prussian masters, which artifacts were intended, judging by their small parameters, mostly for the burial complexes, in the southeastern Baltic there were also met miniature derivatives (for women’s burial complexes) and massive ones (for men’s clothing) of the two-plate brooches, close in their forms to Scandinavian fibulae. In contrast to Russian Federation, the derivatives of two-plate brooches appeared, apparently, initially in Masuria. The interest of local craftsmen in the forms of German brooches as prototypes for their derivatives is not connected with the territorial proximity of the Germanic tribal, but with the dense matrimonial and trade ties established between the Western and Northern Germans and the Western Balts.

1. Production and distribution of Scandinavian fibulae and derivatives of plate fasteners in the Merovingian era in Sambia and in the Masurian Lake District testifies not only (or rather, not so much) about copying Western European patterns, as H. Neumayer believed, but also about collecting artifacts primarily for the cult needs.